Just For A Moment
by Song Of A Free Heart
Summary: A series of drabbles for Jackunzel Week. Rated T for Day 3, just to be safe.
1. Once In A Blue Moon

**My submission for the first day of Jackunzel Week on tumblr. I've never written this pairing before, so I am a little nervous. This is also my first drabble in a while. But I hope you enjoy it!**

_**Rise of the Guardians**_** belongs to DreamWorks Animation and William Joyce. **_**Tangled**_** belong to Disney. Hiccup and Merida make an appearance in this, so I should mention that they belong to DWA and Disney Pixar respectively.**

_Once In A Blue Moon_

"Remind me again why I agreed to this," Jack said, as he trailed a few steps behind Hiccup and Merida as they walked down the main street of Burgess.

A breeze was blowing, the temperature dropping as night came a little closer every moment. The weather had taken a decided turn for the colder recently, and that Jack liked.

This whole outing, however, was not his idea of fun.

From the movement of Merida's head, Jack could tell that the Scottish girl had rolled her eyes.

"Would yoo stop complainin', Frost?" she asked, with a glance back over her blue clad shoulder. "Hiccup's doin' ya a favor?"

"I do not need Hiccup's help to find a girlfriend," Jack said – for the hundredth time this past week. "I'm just fine being single. I don't have time for a girlfriend!"

He didn't know why he bothered, really.

Ever since Hiccup had finally asked Merida out, he had become convinced that Jack must be in denial. And while Jack was happy for his friends (they really were a great couple – even if they were occasionally so sweet he felt the need to make a dentist appointment), but that didn't mean he needed a girlfriend.

His schedule was full. Unlike Hiccup and Merida, who were students at Burgess College For The Arts, he had a job. Two, actually. Three if he counted that he was the regular babysitter for the Bennett siblings (his favorite job).

The mountain would be opening soon, which meant he would be back at his winter job, and all his free time would be spent snowboarding.

Where in that did he have time to try and keep a girl happy? His one or two experiences with dating his been more trying than enjoyable, and he had given up wasting his time and energy trying to appease a girl who didn't know how to maintain her own identity.

And now Hiccup was convinced he had found the "perfect girl".

Jack had argued there was no such thing as a perfect anything – and Hiccup had told him to stop being so literal.

"Quite mopin'," Merida said. "Honestly, you're worse than ma brothers."

"I resent that."

"Just give her a chance," Hiccup said. "Rapunzel's a little shy, but she's nice."

"My last girlfriend was 'nice'," Jack muttered. "Sophomore year. Remember that?"

"That was your fault," Merida said. "Ya clearly don't know how t' choose a girl."

"I don't, but Hiccup does?" Jack asked. He was now in step with his friends, but only to make conversation easier. He was still here under protest.

"He chose me, didn't he?" Merida said.

"For me, I mean," Jack said.

"It won't be that bad," Hiccup said, too cheerfully for Jack's taste.

"Please," he muttered. "Things like this only work out once in a blue moon."

"Then at least I'm paying for dinner," Hiccup said, as he pulled open the heavy wooden door of The Toothless Dragon.

And that was the answer to the question of why Jack was here. He had refused vehemently... until Hiccup had agreed to pay for dinner.

Jack went inside, to warm air that smelled of wood smoke and roasting meat. The Toothless Dragon was a bizarrely named rustic restaurant, but it had the best food, and the most reasonable rates, in town.

At the bar to one side sat mountain men and wood cutters, nursing large glass tumblers of beer as they talked on about whatever it was they talked about. Jack had never been curious enough to find out.

Yet despite the well-stocked bar (he didn't drink, but the menu, and the sign in the window, said it was well stocked, so he would take their word for it), it was still a family restaurant, and there were tables and booths of couples and young families.

Hiccup led them to a table near the back, where a golden haired girl sat, pencil scraping over the rough pages of her sketchpad.

Her long hair was tied back with several complex braids, and she looked up with large green eyes as they approached.

"Hey, Rapunzel," Hiccup greeted. "This is my friend, Jack Frost. Jack, this is Rapunzel Gothel."

Jack had been wondering what kind of name Rapunzel was... but he decided Gothel was much the worse of the two.

Rapunzel tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and offered Jack a shy smile. "Hi."

Jack slid his hands in his pockets, now more uncomfortable than upset. She was so nervous (and this clearly wasn't her idea) so it was hard to be upset with her. And she was cute...

"So... what are you drawing?" he asked, when he was seated across from her. Hiccup was to his left, Merida on Rapunzel's right.

"Oh, um... it's the dragon on the menu," she said. She held up her sketch of the black dragon that was the restaurant's logo. Hack wasn't an art critic, but her skill was evident.

It was better than he could have done, that was for sure.

"I've never drawn a dragon before," she said.

"I'm guessing you're in Hiccup's art class?"

She nodded. "I'm an art major – mostly painting. What about you?"

Jack shook his head, in contrast. "I'm not a student."

"Oh."

"Jack's a barista at Starbucks," Merida said, with a vicious smirk as she tore apart a steaming roll from the bread basket. "And a snowboard instructor. And a babysitter. Mostly he's a ski-bum."

"Snowboarding," Jack said. "And I'm not a bum. Or do you forget who pays most of your boyfriend's rent so he can keep up with tuition?"

He and Jack shared an apartment close to the campus. Hiccup usually paid his fair half of the rent and bills, but Jack didn't mind taking on a little more when Hiccup's money was tight. He made enough to cover it.

Merida shook out her curly red hair.

A waitress came and took their orders before Jack made another attempt at conversation. His brief clash with Merida seemed to have silenced Rapunzel.

And now that Jack had considered how much Hiccup was putting down for dinner, it wouldn't hurt to give it a chance. Rapunzel wasn't so bad. Skittish, though.

"So... do you snowboard? Or ski?"

She shook her head.

Jack fought the urge to roll his eyes. In his mind, that was kind of a deal breaker. Snowboarding was half his life.

"I mean, I want to learn," she added quickly.

Jack looked back at her.

"I've just never really had a chance."

Okay. That was forgivable.

"Do you like the snow?"

"Mm-hmm." She nodded. "It's so beautiful, the way it sparkled in the light, especially in the moonlight. I've been trying to paint it for years. When it snows, the whole world feels so peaceful... and safe."

Not what he was looking for.

"What I mean is: do you like snowball fights?" He had resolved never to have another girlfriend who didn't like snowball fights. "Sledding? Ice skating?"

Rapunzel nervously played with that lock of hair that was free from her braids. "I- I don't know. I've never done any of those things."

Even Merida was looking at Rapunzel strangely. "Ya've seen the snow, but ya ain't ever played in it?"

Rapunzel shook her head again. "My mother was kind of... over protective?"

"No. _Ma_ mother was over protective," Merida said. "And I can almost beat Jack on the slopes."

"No, you cannot," Jack said, then turned back to Rapunzel. "You've never played in the snow?"

A shake of the head, her eyes growing more nervous with each moment.

"Your mother let you come to college, something that should make even the most liberal parents nervous, but she didn't let you play in the snow?"

He still couldn't get past the fact she hadn't been allowed to play in the snow, whatever else her mother had and hadn't allowed.

"No, just..." Rapunzel paused a moment, and licked her lips. She didn't exactly _let_ me come to college. I kind of... ran away?"

They all stared at her, new respect lighting Merida's eyes.

Jack leaned back in his chair, completely forgetting that he was supposed to be here under protest.

"Why would you do that?" he asked. "I mean, I get some people want to go to college and everything, but, to run away?"

Rapunzel's fingers were playing with the edge of her napkin, looking down at her sketchbook, though he doubted she could see it.

"I... growing up, mother always told me that the world was a dark, scary place. And to a point, it is. But it's not like she said. I homeschooled, so I never left the house."

"That explains a lot," Jack said. "Not that home schooling is bad," he added, when she glanced up.

"I used to paint on the walls of the house. Mother didn't mind. But I painted everywhere. The walls, the doors, the fridge... if I had been allowed outside, I probably would have painted the outside of the house to. But when I turned eighteen, I looked around and there was nowhere left to paint.

"And I realized that if I stayed there, my life would never begin. So, I applied for scholarships and came here. This was actually the only school I could afford to get to. I'm still on scholarship, I live in the dorms, and I work in the school library."

That explained why he hadn't seen her before.

"Ya might be my new hero," Merida said.

Rapunzel's cheeks colored, and she shrugged humbly.

And with that, Rapunzel was initiated into their circle.

It would be a while, and a number of snowball fights and snowboarding lessons, before Jack thought of her as more than a friend.

And another year or so before he realized that a life without her wouldn't be worth it.

But that night, the moon was definitely blue.


	2. Legend

**Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed Day 1. Your comments made me so happy, and I truly appreciate them.**

**Jack Frost and **_**Rise of the Guardians**_** are the property of DreamWorks Animation and William Joyce. Rapunzel and **_**Tangled**_** are the property of Disney. **

Day 2: Legend

The orphanage has strict rules against climbing onto the roof. And Jack understood that. When you lived in a house with twenty-three children, of varying ages, you came to appreciate the rules that maintained some sense of sanity – especially after the third broken arm.

But tonight, they needed the quiet only the roof could offer.

The vines that grew up the orphanage walls were older than they were, the tendrils thickened into branches that could easily take their combined weight.

Even with her long skirt, Rapunzel was an adept climber, her bare feet finding traction on the smooth bark, her deceptively slender arms pulling her up with ease.

A late spring breeze caught some of the golden hair that had come free from the braid Jack had helped her with that morning.

The clay tiles of the roof were still warm under their bare feet as they walked up to the peak of the roof. Corona didn't get much snow, so the angled roofs weren't very steep, and were more for appearance than anything else.

Jack heard Rapunzel sigh as they sat down.

It had been a long day for both of them. The older children of the orphanage were responsible for helping with the younger children. And as the two oldest, they were given the most responsibility. It wasn't that they minded – just that they were tired.

It had been a while since they had had a few minutes to themselves. Hence, Jack's decision to climb to the roof tonight.

After a moment, she leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder as they looked out over the bay. Jack smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

The moon and stars reflected off the calm dark water, while the city was lit with the feint glow of street lights and candles. They could see the bridge that led to the main land, and the forest beyond it.

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

Rapunzel paused a moment before she asked her question.

"Why didn't you leave when you leave when you turned eighteen?"

Most people left the orphanage on their eighteenth birthday, with little in the way of a backward glance. They had grown up watching it happen.

Jack's birthday had been several months back, but he hadn't made a move to leave. A few of the adults had hinted that he needed to leave at some point, but he knew they didn't have the heart to kick him out.

Jack rested his forehead against the crown of her head. He inhaled the sweet herb-and-flower scent of the shampoo she used.

"You really don't know?" he asked in a near whisper.

She pulled away to look up at him with her green eyes. "What do you mean?"

"I couldn't leave without you," he said.

Rapunzel blinked. "You want me to come with you?"

He nodded. "Why would I go anywhere without my best friend?"

"But what will we do?" she asked.

Jack shrugged. "What do you want to do?"

He really wasn't picky.

Rapunzel stood up, walking a little way down the roof. Jack stood as well, and followed a step behind. She wasn't afraid, and she could handle herself. But he had promised not to let her fall.

After a moment, she turned to him with a wide smile.

"I want to paint the world," she said. "I want to read, and learn, and see things. I want to meet people."

Jack smiled back and reached out to rest a hand on her forearm. "We can do that."

Her eyes sobered as she met his gaze. "Jack, I- I want to do... something. Something amazing. Something that will touch people, that will make them smile. I- Maybe it's foolish, but I just..."

She trailed off and bit her lower lip, clearly nervous.

Jack understood why.

Rapunzel was an incurable dreamer. Her eyes saw wonder and beauty, and her sanguine heart overflowed with hoy to the point it splashed over onto everyone blessed enough to be in her light.

With all the children that came through the orphanage, the jaded adults didn't have time for her dreams.

But hers was a light Jack refused to see dim. There wasn't enough light in the world as it was. She was the sun, and he was the moon, reflecting her light.

He reached up to touch her cheek, brushing aside a strand of her hair.

"Then that's what we'll do," he said, lifting her chin so she looked up to meet his eyes.

Her smile slowly returned.

"There is one condition, though," Jack said, with mock solemnity. That was the closest he could get to solemnity at the moment.

"What?" Rapunzel asked.

"A young man and a young woman running around together isn't strictly proper." He said. It was very, very hard to bite back his grin. "So you'll have to marry me."

Rapunzel's eyes widened. "Jack..."

He touched her cheek again, and now his seriousness wasn't so mock. Even he knew what he was doing, and it was no small thing.

"I love you," he whispered. "I want to make your dream come true. I've be honored if you would give me that chance."

Rapunzel smiled.

"Yes," she said, hugging him.

Jack hugged her back, his heart pounding whith excitement. He had known for years that he would ask her, but that didn't make it any less nerve-wracking.

"Do you think we'll be able to do it, Jack?" she asked. "That we can change the world somehow? It seems so... pretentious, just to think about it."

Jack pulled back to look in her eyes.

"Rapunzel, we'll be legendary."

**Can I admit that I really don't like writing traditional proposals? Most of the proposals I write are in the face of near-death experiences, and anything that makes the girl go "you're asking me NOW?!"**


	3. Make Hay While The Sun Shines

**Jackunzel Week Day 3.**

**I started reading **_**Star Wars Choices of One**_** the other day, and immediately this idea popped into my head. So, a sci-fi twist on Jackunzel. I may be the first to try this idea... There are a few nods to **_**Star Wars **_**that anyone who's seen the movies might get, and then a few that only fans of the EU will recognize. So have fun!**

**I'm sorry if the theme feels forced.**

**Again, thank you so much to everyone who has made these past few days so much fun with your likes and reviews.**

**Jack and Hiccup belong to DreamWorks animation and William Joyce and Cressida Cowell respectively (have they met yet?). Rapunzel belongs to Disney, Merida belongs to Disney Pixar.**

Day 3: Make Hay While The Sun Shines

"Saving a princess is not supposed to be this complicated," Jack muttered, leaning back in his seat at the table in _The Night Fury_'s galley.

"Saving the princess wasn't complicated," Hiccup said, hands in his hair. "It's what we do now that's complicated."

"Thank you for clearing that up," Jack muttered.

"Would ya boys quite arguin'?" Merida asked. "Frost, quit complainin'."

Life had been easier before Hiccup and Merida had gotten married, Jack decided. Before, he would have been allowed to argue with her. Now it didn't seem like a good idea.

The three friends were quiet for a moment, Jack glaring at the table surface as though it had done him a personal injustice.

"The simple fact is, we saved the princess, and even Jack can't get through the blockade on Corona," Hiccup said.

"Not in this ship." The failure still left a bitter taste in Jack's mouth. He stood up and went to the cooler, pulling out a container of potatoes left over from earlier.

"We have to lay low," Hiccup went on. "Preferably on a planet we're familiar with that's close by, and outside the Empire."

"That's getting' harder every day," Merida said, though they were all aware of the fact.

"What about DunBroch?" Hiccup asked, looking at his wife. "Your father's no friend of the Empire."

But Merida shook her head. "Not while the war with Mor'du is back on. What about Berk? Even if they thought t' look – which they probably wouldn't – there's plenty o' places to hide."

"Yeah, no," Jack said. "You want to take a princess from Corona to a planet of space pirates?"

Merida glared at him.

"There's nowhere else without going through Imperial Territory," Hiccup said.

"There's Warren." There was a decided smirk in Merida's voice.

Jack froze with a fork in his mouth.

He turned, to find his friends looking at him expectantly.

"You're kidding," Jack said, around the neck of his fork.

Their expressions didn't change.

"You remember I was kicked off the planet, right? With 'good riddance' still ringing in my ears?"

"Wouldn't E. Aster make an exception?" Hiccup asked. "For the princess?"

For a moment, Jack pictured Rapunzel on Warren, among the bright flowers, the warm sunlight and the green grass... she would fit in just fine. And E. Aster would probably love her.

He probably would make an exception, too. If Jack apologized. But he wasn't ready to admit just how wrong he had been. Not to E. Aster.

The ship shuddered, lurched, and then stilled. The vibration of the engines decreased now that the hyper drive was no longer in use.

"Where are we?" Merida asked.

Jack, already half way out of the kitchen, food contained in hand, looked back over his shoulder to answer. "Krash."

Krash was a small trading post, always in the shadow of its sister planet. Its clientele ranged from honest traders to smugglers, and everything in between.

Since they were on the run, it seemed like a decent place to regroup. Few questions were asked, and they would only be here a few hours.

But when Jack looked out the cockpit viewport, he realized that might not have been his best idea.

He punched the intercom button. "Hiccup, you better get up here."

Hiccup and Merida joined him a moment later, looking out at the Imperial Carrier that loomed outside the viewport, between them and the planet.

"What are they doin' here?" Merida asked.

"Looking for the princess, of course," Jack rolled his eyes.

"Have they hailed us?" asked Hiccup. He was the captain for a reason.

Jack was about to say no when the comm system crackled.

"Unidentified vessel, this is Imperial Carrier 74-8512. Please state your cargo and purpose on Krash."

Hiccup took the comm.

"Imperial Carrier, this is Captain Haddock of the _Hopeful Puffin_."

Jack cringed at the fake name, as he always did.

"We have no cargo. We're here to refuel and resupply."

The friends waited with baited breath, Jack's brain already racing over the best possible course of action for whatever happened next.

"How many are on board?"

"Ruder than usual," Merida muttered.

Hiccup looked at Jack, silently asking if they could hide or disguise the princess.

Jack held up three fingers, and Hiccup nodded.

"Three, sir. My first mate, our pilot, and myself."

Another pregnant pause...that extended far too long. Jack watched the numbers on the dash chrono change twice.

Jack half turned to Merida, not taking his eyes off the carrier.

"Get the princess. Hide anything in her room."

"What about her?"

"Evidence first. I—"

He was cut off when the comm system crackled again.

"_Hopeful Puffin_, prepare to be boarded and searched."

Merida ran out of the cockpit.

"I hope you have an idea," Hiccup said, after a polite agreement to the officer.

#

They met up with Merida in the ship's lounge.

Beside her was Princess Rapunzel of Corona, wearing one of Merida's dark green flight suits (which didn't fit), with her pink brocade slippers. Her long golden hair was braided and clipped back, but still in the way.

"You hid everything?" Jack asked.

"Down the laundry chute," Merida said with a nod.

"We're latched onto the carrier," Hiccup said. "They'll be on any moment. What's your idea, Jack?"

"Let them search the ship," Jack said.

"And where'll you be?" Merida asked.

"I'll be in the shower," Jack said, as he reached out for Rapunzel's hand. "Come on, Blondie."

Marida called after them, but they were already around the corner, so Jack couldn't make it out.

"What are you doing?" Rapunzel asked, a little breathless.

Not for the first time, Jack offered a prayer of gratitude that Rapunzel was a shy princess, not a spoiled princess screaming at him to unhand her person, or whatever they said.

They came to a stop outside his room, and he pressed his hand against the palm reader outside his door. "Do you _want_ to go back to Imperial Tower?"

"N-no."

The door slid open.

"Then get in."

He had a single room, a shower unit and a refresher unit in one corner. Jack tugged off his blue shirt and his brown slacks.

"Jack-!"

"Get in," he repeated, gesturing to the shower. Her followed her, still in his boxers, making sure a towel was hung up on the bar on the outside of the shower unit.

He start to close the door, but rolled his eyes when he saw several yard of golden hair still outside.

"Is all this hair really necessary?" he asked, as he dragged it in.

The door finally shut.

"Long hair is a mark of n-nobility on Corona."

She was pointedly looking everywhere but at him.

"That explains it." He still rolled his eyes. But he had seen weirder, and more annoying, marks of hierarchy. "Here."

He picked her up by her waist and hoisted her up to sit on the ledge in one corner that was meant for shower products. She was small enough it worked as a seat, and he handed her the bottles that had been there before her.

He turned back to the other side of the shower and twisted the knobs for the stream of hot water from the shower head.

"Are you sure this will work?" Rapunzel asked, not looking up from the bottles of shampoo, conditioner and body wash that now sat on her lap.

"Nothing is sure," Jack said, the words coming back to him. He didn't remember who had said them, but it had been said so many times it was now lodged so deep in his mind he couldn't escape them.

He took a deep breath to calm his own nerves, trying to think of anything he might be missing, or overlooking.

The shower unit was filling with steam, making it harder to breath. He could feel light-headedness creeping on the edges of his mind.

With another deep breath, Jack leaned back against the wall of the shower, keeping an eye on the waterproof comm unit for whatever Hiccup or Merida would alert him off next.

"I'm sorry to be so much trouble," Rapunzel said, after a moment.

Jack shrugged, not sure what to say.

They hadn't exactly planned to rescue her... they had been in a place at a time. Right or wrong, he wasn't sure. But the princess wasn't guilty of anything; she didn't deserve to be locked up. And Jack was too much of a free spirit to wish that on anyone who wasn't a criminal.

"Will it take long?" she asked. "For them to search the ship?"

"Depends how bored they are – and how suspicious," he said. "But a carried that big has enough troops to send several teams-"

There was the thud of boots on the ceiling overhead, on the upper level. He heard Rapunzel gasp, but held his breath and counted the steps just about his head.

"Six," he said. "They never board a ship this size with less than eight, so there's at least two teams of six searching both levels."

"How do you know?"

Jack looked over at the princess, who was going from nervous to terrified at a rapid rate. Not that he could blame her. Empress Gothel wasn't known for humane treatment in her prisons.

He hesitated a moment, then sighed.

"I attended the Imperial Flight Academy," he said. The decision was what had gotten him kicked off warren, with the oder to never come back.

"You were an Imperial?"

"Technically," he said. "I was one of the best pilots they ever had."

She arched an eyebrow at his bragging, and he was relieved to see she was relaxing a little.

"Hey, it's true," he said. "But there were problems when they tried to make me an officer."

"What happened?"

"According to my final assessment, I was rash, not a team player, had no sense of responsibility and lacked proper respect for authority."

"Oh."

"Merida fell over laughing when I told her that." He rolled his eyes. "Can you hand me the shampoo?"

Rapunzel looked at the three bottled in her lap, and handed over the requested one.

Jack squirted some of the blue substance in his palm and befan to lather it through his hair.

"What about you?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

Jack shrugged. "Tell me something about yourself. What do you like to do?"

"Oh. I- I like to paint. And read. And gardening." She leaned back against the shower wall. "If I were on Corona, I would be helping replant some of the garden beds right now."

She hugged herself, her eyes darkening. "All I ever wanted was to be a good ruler for my people. Now I don't know if I'll ever be able to go back. And with the trade blockade, they're probably suffering now."

Jack looked away, not sure what to say or do to comfort her.

But the sound of sniffling made him look back. Rapunzel quickly wiped away her tears, but he could still see her stress, and her fear.

"Hey." Forgetting his hands were covered in shampoo suds, he reached out to rest a hand on her arm.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I know being scared won't help anything. But this is all my fault. I'm so sorry, Jack. If I hadn't-"

The comm buzzed.

"Frost? Where are ya?" He couldn't tell is Merida's annoyance was real, or just good acting.

Probably both. He fully expected a lecture when this was over.

He hit the talk-back button. "I'm in the shower. Can this wait?"

His annoyance was a little real.

"No. We're bein' searched."

"My door's unlocked."

He turned to Rapunzel. "We're gonna get through is, okay?"

"Are you sure?"

Nothing is sure. The words resounded in his mind. But he pushed them aside.

"You gotta trust me," he said, speaking fast and low. "Just try to keep quiet."

She nodded, and he stepped out of the shower.

He had his towel around his waist, over his boxers, just as the door of his room swooshed open.

Merida was glaring daggers at him, followed by an imperial officer in severe black uniform, and four troopers in full armor, faces hidden behind their helmets.

"Uh, hi?" he offered. Memories of having his dorm room searched as a cadet came back as he saw the troopers.

The officer, whose name tag read Black, looked at him with visible distasted. His angled face was an unhealthy grayish, while his black hair was slicked back just to military standards. In one hand was a datapad.

Jack remembered exactly why he hadn't liked being in the Academy. The regulated everything, and stiff formality, had been mind-numbing.

"What's your name?" Officer Black asked.

"Jack Frost." Out of old habit, he almost added 'sir', but he bit it back in time. His body had started to stiffen to attention, but he refused. He was not a soldier. Not anymore.

"You're the pilot of this ship?" Black's eyes wondered the room, brows raised, upper lip curled.

The troopers were searching his room – in drawers, and under the bed. Jack resisted any comment on the invasion of privacy. One had what he recognized as a heat detector. He had anticipated that – hence why he'd made sure to fill the shower with steam.

"Yes." Another 'sir' jumped to his lips, only to be bitten back.

"You're the pilot, yet you're taking a shower-" another grimace of distaste "- while this ship prepares to land?"

"It's my time off," he said, with a nonchalant shrug. "Hiccup and Merida are both capable pilots."

More than capable. But he wouldn't say that now – not when he was trying to annoy Black out of his room.

Black looked at Merida.

"My husband and I aren't too strict," Merida said.

"Hmm."

Black paced around the room again. His data pad beeped, and he looked down at the screen.

He had looked Jack up in the Imperial system.

"Where are you from, Frost?"

"Burgess." Originally. He barely remembered it. But he had put it on his Academy application, and that was the information he would go with.

"You trained at the Imperial Flight Academy, I see."

"For two years," Jack said. "Until they decided I wasn't officer material."

"Clearly." A pointed look at Jack's towel, and still soapy hair. "What's your purpose here on Krash?"

"Refuel. Resupply."

"You're next destination."

"I'm the pilot, not the captain." It wasn't a lie, and it didn't actually answer the question. "Now, can I get back to the shower?"

Black glared at him.

"Or do you need to search the shower?"

#

The ship had moved into its sleep cycle, the lights dimmed.

Jack sat in the cockpit, looking out at the dull walls of the docking bay they were parked in, thanking. Oh what, he wasn't sure. Just that he was thinking about something.

Merida had started to chew him out the moment the Imperials were gone and he was dressed... but had been cut off by Rapunzel, who assured her it was okay.

The princess was growing on him. But she couldn't look him in the eye without blushing.

"Why are you awake?" Hiccup asked, coming into the cockpit behind him.

Jack spun his chair in a full circle, then caught the edge of the dash to stop his momentum. "Can't sleep. You?"

"I just woke up with the feeling we need to get out of here," Hiccup said.

Jack didn't say anything. Hiccup's feelings tended to be accurate, and saved them worlds of trouble when they listened.

Jack had learned to listen.

With a nod, he turned on the ships engine. He felt better once the familiar vibration of the ship had returned. The ship had lifted into the air, and they were in atmosphere before the obvious question was raised.

But Jack already had the answer. He had known since Rapunzel started crying.

Pulling up the star chart, he selected the blue and green planet and put the course into the nav computer.

"Where are we headed?" Hiccup asked, warily and wearily.

"Warren."

"What about E. Aster."

"As he says, I might as well make hay while the sun shines." Jack sighed. "I'll just have to admit I was wrong."

**2800+ words... and not especially romantic. I'm worried it's a little weak. Sci-fi isn't my strength, and I was trying to keep it short, while at the same time trying to build a whole universe. **

**There was going to be an additional scene where Jack was going to take her over Warren in the ship, and show her the Sunset Mountains (Toothiana's palace), the Ice Kingdom (North's workshop) and other places inspired by the Guardians. When this week is over, maybe I'll post a brief follow up to this.**

**Also, **_**The Hopeful Puffin**_** is the name of Hiccup's first boat in the books. I was going to have him say they needed a non-threatening name, but it didn't seem to fit.**


	4. Vestiges

**The shortest yet. But I have to get it up tonight for various, personal reasons.**

**Jack belongs to DreamWorks and William Joyce, Rapunzel to Disney.**

Day 5: Vestige

Rapunzel took a deep breath and hesitated.

She had told herself she would comeback. The need for closure had always drawn her back.

Still, three summers had come and gone. Whenever she thought of it, she had always found some excuse to put it off. "Just a little longer."

Now, she faced the vines that had been the gate that locked her in, and kept the world out.

Yet they were brushed aside so easily, it was hard to believe they had ever been enough to guard any secret.

Forget-me-nots sprung up from the places where she stepped, and all the plants grew and blossomed as she walked by. Her very presence brought the spring.

Rapunzel looked at the grass, the wild flowers, the stream that flowed from the base of the waterfall, and murmured over the mossy rocks.

Slowly, so slowly, she lifted her eyes.

In the center of the cove, covered in vines, as though it had grown out of the rocks, was the tower. The circular house at the tope was rather cute, she observed. While and brown, with the pointed purple roof.

It didn't look like a prison.

She climbed the vines, now three years thicker, all but hiding the stem of the tower.

She hesitated again at the windowsill.

But she had come this far. She wasn't going to back down.

Part of her wished she had waited for Jack, as Bunnymund had suggested.

But she knew it had to be now.

She pulled herself up onto the windowsill, then into the small cottage.

It really was just that: a cottage set on top of a tower.

Once so immaculate, dusted and polished by her tireless cleaning, filled with the scent of baking cookies and good food.

Rapunzel's eyes began to sting as tears threatened to overflow.

Dust had settled everywhere. Her paintings, years of work, had already begun to fade. The air was stale and dead.

Dead. The word still echoed in her mind.

Pieces of the shattered mirror still lay on the stone floor. Her few plants had long since died. Even as she was, she couldn't revive them. Only a few dry leaves now lay on the floor.

The summer breeze turned cold, and grew to a wind.

She looked back just as Jack Frost landed on the windowsill, shepherd's crook in hand. She tried to greet him, but the words didn't make it to her throat.

Jack jumped down to the floor, a small cloud of dust billowing around his bare feet.

"Bunny said you were here."

Rapunzel nodded. I – I had to see it," she said, looking around.

She turned to Jack again.

"I love the Warren. I just..."

Jack leaned on his staff. "You need closure."

"Is that strange?" she asked.

Jack shook his head. He stepped closer, resting a hand on her arm.

"Why do you think I went back to Burgess for three hundred years?" Jack asked softly.

Rapunzel nodded her understanding. Crouching down, she picked up a piece from the mirror.

"Vestiges," she murmured. She ran her fingers over the cool, reflective surface. "Pieces. That's all that's left."

This was the place where she had died, falling from her tower... only to wake up again, as a spirit of spring, finger painting blossoms, and summoning sunrays.

"I thought there was something left here," she admitted. "But there's not."

Jack touched her arm again. "Of course not."

With a gentle touch, he turned her to face him.

"You're here, Rapunzel," he said. "If there are pieces hidden, you don't have to go looking for them."

He touched her chest with a fingertip, over her heart. "It's right here.

Rapunzel looked up at him for a moment, then threw her arms around his neck.

They stood there, holding each other, Winter and Spring.

Outside, all the plants and flowers were in full bloom... even as a soft snow began to fall.

**Like I said, sadder than the others, but hopefully sweet.**

**Until next time...**


	5. Takes Two To Tango

**Day 5... I can't believe the end is so close!**

**This one is superhero themed, because I love superheroes. This one is less sad that yesterday's, thank goodness. A little long, though. And I have to confess, I got the basic idea from an original story I have in the back of my mind.**

**Again, thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. I do so appreciate you support.**

**Jack Frost belongs to William Joyce and DreamWorks, Rapunzel to Disney, Hiccup and Toothless to Cressida Cowell and DreamWorks, Merida to Disney/Pixar.**

Day 5: Takes Two To Tango

As soon as Rapunzel Overland opened the door of the apartment, she was greeted with a meow from the smoke grey cat that sat on the back of the couch by the door.

"Hey, Pascal," she greeted. Sliding her key back into the pocket of her jacket, she paused a moment to scratch the cat behind the ears. "Is Jack home yet?"

There was no answer – from Pascal, or anywhere is the apartment – so it was an obvious negative.

She smiled as the cat pressed into her hand and meowed again. His green eyes looked after her when she moved on into the kitchen.

The apartment was fairly small, but there was enough room for the three of them. And it was bigger than the studio she had lived in before, so Pascal could hardly complain.

The air was filled with the warm smell of the stew she had left in the crockpot that morning.

Before she set about preparing the rest of dinner, she clicked the power button on the TV remote. The screen lit up with the new station Jack had left it on the morning.

Rapunzel only half listened as she went about her preparations. She had discovered long ago it was easier to just get dinner done as soon as she got home.

She had just finished chopping celery when she heard the all too familiar music from the TV that meant there was breaking news. They cut away from the coverage of an employee strike in a nearby town.

She looked over, dread nibbling at her stomach.

"This just in," the news anchor said. She was so stiff and serious it would have been comical at any other time. "The super villain known as Pitch black has launched another attack in downtown Burgess."

"Of course," Rapunzel muttered. Leaving the vegetables, she went to sit on the couch, pushing short brown hair out of her eyes.

Pascal immediately came to sit on her lap – which he regarded as his rightful territory. Rapunzel absently scratched behind his ears, eyes intent on the screen.

They had gone to an on-the-scene reporter.

"We're live in downtown Burgess, where Pitch Black and his nightmares have launched yet another attack on City Hall."

In the background, among the sky scrapers of down town Burgess, Rapunzel could see the horse-like nightmares as they galloped through the air, amidst the tall buildings, swooping down at the people unfortunate enough to get too close.

On the largest of the creatures sat Pitch Black, tall an imposing, on the corner of City Hall, watching as the police were beaten back by the nightmares.

An arrow shot through the horses, causing them to dissipate. Another sailed past where they had been. But Pitch pulled the reigns and his nightmare stepped out of the way just in time. The arrow shot past him.

"As you can see, Archer is already on the scene, doing an admirable job of holding them back."

The camera panned to Merida. Her glare was hidden behind her mask, but Rapunzel knew her friend well enough to know it was there. Her mouth moved in what was either a threat, a taunt – or both.

Another group of nightmares were incinerated by a burst of purple flames. A dragon swooped through the ashes, ridden by a green clad figure.

"Viking has just arrived as well," the reporter said. "I'm getting reports that the police are now setting up detours, but you should know that traffic is back up onto the bridge. Of course, everyone is advised to avoid the area until further-"

The wind around the reporter picked up, messing up her perfectly styled hair, raising a few papers off the street.

Reporter and camera both looked upward, where another figure was coming toward them on the wind.

Rapunzel's heart skipped a beat, and a smile tugged at her lips – even as she felt her worry increase.

"We can't tell yet, but from the sudden drop in temperature, we believe – yes, it's confirmed now. Jack Frost is on the scene."

Of course he was, Rapunzel thought. A few things he was willing to his friends, but Pitch was something he couldn't turn a blind eye to.

On the screen, Jack made a wide motion with his arm. The nightmares galloping toward him feel away, dissipated by the frost he had sent their way.

The three heroes regrouped, Merida now behind Hiccup on the dragon's back. She fired another arrow to keep the nightmares at bay while Jack and Hiccup planned.

Or rather, Hiccup planned, and Jack listened. Hiccup had always been the better strategist. The rest were more likely to run in half-cocked, only to fail unnecessarily.

Jack nodded and took off, while Hiccup brought Toothless back into the air as well.

"I should be there," Rapunzel murmured, feeling the familiar ache at the loss of her hair – and her powers.

A few years ago she would have been there, fighting beside her husband and her friends.

But while Pitch and Gothel's brief alliance had been a disaster for them, they had succeeded in cutting off her hair – what Gothel had wanted all along.

It had been Gothel's last victory – Jack had gone on a three day rampage until he got Gothel behind bars – but it had been a victory none-the-less.

Without her seventy feet of hair, Rapunzel was powerless. When it came to a fight, she was not more of a hindrance than a help.

It made these moments so much worse to watch from the safety of the apartment.

Jack attacked Pitch from the right. But before he reached him, one of the nightmares rammed into his side. The force sent Jack reeling, no long in control of his flight.

The camera followed him as he hit a skyscraper, the glass shattering from the impact, and Jack disappeared from sight.

Rapunzel gasped, standing up without thinking. Pascal mewled at being unceremoniously dumped out of her lap.

"Sorry, Pascal." She crouched down to pick up the cat, holding him to her chest, never taking her eyes off the TV.

"Jack..." she whispered, her heart hammering her ribcage.

But the camera had turned back to fight as Hiccup, Toothless and Merida dived toward them.

Pitch dodged any direct blows, but he was now on the offensive. Toothless was bigger than the Nightmare, and a flick of his wings kept Pitch from getting very far.

A few moments later, in a flurry of white frost, Jack returned to the scene.

The four (Toothless counted as one of them) herded Pitch to the edge of the rood, fire, arrows and frost aimed directly at him. Merida had jumped off Toothless so they formed a half circle around him.

But before any of them could fire... Pitch and his nightmare dove off the roof.

All the other nightmares that had were in the air... dissipated.

Rapunzel sighed in relief, squeezing Pascal tighter. But she wouldn't breathe easy until he was home safe.

#

She finally heard Jack's key in the lock, and jumped up to greet him as he pushed open the door.

"I'm home," he greeted, with his characteristic grin. But the cut on his cheek was impossible to miss, and she could see he was tired.

"Jack! Are you all right?" She wanted to hug him, but not knowing the extent of his injuries, she held back.

"Fine, I promise," he assured. "You must have seen the whole thing on TV."

"Yes," she said. She reached up to brush a fingertip just below the cut. A few years ago, with her hair, she could easily have healed it.

"There was an ambulance on site," he said. "I got checked out before I left."

"All right," she sighed.

Still grinning, Jack leaned down and hugged her.

The chains on her lungs finally broke, and she could breathe easily as she held him in return. She inhaled his familiar smell of mint and pine, tainted with dirt and sweat.

Pascal came up and sniffed at Jack, then turned back away.

"That cat is never gonna get used to me, is he?"

#

"I feel so useless," Rapunzel said, when they were on the couch after dinner.

They were watching Star Wars (one of his favorites), his head resting on her lap.

Pascal sat on a nearby arm chair, glaring at Jack with a ferocity reserved for trespassers. But they ignored the cat (spouses took priorities over pets). Those just as if it were Pascal, Rapunzel ran her fingers through Jack's hair absently.

Jack looked away from the movie to look up at her. "What do you mean?"

"Not being able to fight anymore," she said. "When I watch the news, I always feel like I should be out there, with you, Hiccup, Merida and Toothless. But I know if I was there, I would just weigh you down."

"It takes two to tango, Punz," he said, his tone gentle.

It was Rapunzel's turn to ask what he mean.

"You're the reason I keep fighting," he said. He reached up to stroke her cheek with a calloused but gentle hand. "I couldn't do it without you."

Rapunzel couldn't withhold a giggle. "Jack, I don't think that's what the phrase means."

He shrugged, but his expression was more serious.

"Don't feel bad that you can't fight," he said. "As long as you're here when I get home, I couldn't ask for anything more."

"Promise?" she asked.

Jack smirked. "Promise. And I never break my promises."

He lifted his head to kiss her briefly, then turned back to the movie with another boyish grin.

**I was worried this one would be longer, but I'm glad to see it stayed under 2k words.**

**I hope you enjoy it. **

**We're entering the home stretch of Jackunzel Week! Days 6 and 7 will be two parts of the same story.**


	6. Safe Haven

**Day 6, the home stretch! Of which it could be said that I am having WAY too much fun mixing up the different elements of these movies. **

**Today and tomorrow are two parts of the same story.**

**Thank you so much to everyone who has made this week absolutely AMAZING!**

**All elements of **_**Rise of the Guardians**_** belong to William Joyce and DreamWorks, all elements of **_**Tangled**_** belong to Disney. Without further ado...**

Day 6: Safe Haven

Not for the first time, Jack wondered if maybe he shouldn't have made the choices he had in his twenty-three years.

But now that he realized just how stupid he had been, when he wished he could change, he didn't have a chance. Even when he wasn't looking out the window of his cell, the image of the gallows in the prison courtyard was burned into his mind eye.

For a cell, his surroundings were fairly nice. No dripping water, mold or rats. The water was clean, and the bread was a day or two old, but it wasn't moldy.

The royal family of Corona prided themselves on their human treatment of all people – even criminals.

The cot Jack lay on was bare wood, but it was a prison cell, not a royal suit.

Part of his mind argued that he didn't deserve death. He was a thief, not a murderer. He never hurt anyone – not physically. (A few fist fights in taverns didn't count.)

His conscience, however, with his mother's voice, told him this was what he deserved. He chose to break the law, now he would pay the price.

It was hard to push away his conscience when the consequences were so heavy on his mind.

Absently, he wondered if they really expected him to sleep when he was faced with death in the morning. Maybe this last night was just to torture him.

"Jack Frost?"

Jack jolted, the soft voice yanking him out of his thoughts.

Sitting up on the cot, he looked at the figure who stood outside the steel bars of his cell. The torch in the hall was too far to reveal anything, though the voice was female.

He hadn't heard her approach.

Slowly he lay back down, willing his heart beat to return to normal. "Yeah?"

She took a deep breath, and Jack could feel her hesitation.

"Is that really your name?" she asked after a moment.

Jack looked up at the ceiling. "What does it matter?"

"I knew a thief once, who claimed to be someone he wasn't," she said. "So I wondered."

Jack hesitated. Another name came back to him – a name he hadn't allowed himself to think about for years. He had been too ashamed.

"I was someone else," he admitted, rolling onto his side. "But he died a long time ago."

"And now you'll die." Her voice was genuinely sad at the thought.

Jack felt a drop of warmth in his heart. Whoever this girl was, she was actually sad at the thought of his death. That was more than he had expected from anyone.

"It's what I get," he said, voice tight, eyes fixed on the far wall.

"Jack, if you could live, if you had a second chance, would you choose differently?"

At first, Jack didn't believe he could have heard her right. But as it sank in, he sat up and looked at the silhouette that stood outside his cell.

"You would have to promise me, Jack Frost," she said. "And if you broke that promise, I wouldn't hesitate to hand you to the guards."

Jack stared at her. "And if I promise, where would I go?"

"I have a place you can hide," she said. "Do exactly as I say, and you'll have a second chance. Break your promise, I'll personally make sure you wind up right back here."

Jack stood from the cot and walked toward her.

He licked his lips, still not fully believing her proposition.

"I promise," he said, voice dry.

"Promise what?"

This girl was good, whoever she was.

"I promise to live differently from now on," he said. "If you'll help me."

She held a hand through the bars, and Jack shook it. Her hand was small, but her grip was firm.

"Come on," she said. "There isn't much time."

A moment later he heard the sound of the tumblers in the lock falling into place. The door swung open soundlessly, and she gestured for him to follow her as she headed down the hall.

The thought this might be a trick caused Jack to hesitate... but he decided to trust her. What did he have to lose, after all?

He followed her down the strangely empty halls. As she passed by a torch, he saw her hair was brown, cut in a choppy bob, and she wore a purple silk gown, the hem a few inches above her ankles. Her feet were bare – which explained why he hadn't heard her coming up to the cell. But he didn't get a look at her face.

She led him outside, off the palace ground, where a white horse waited, pawing the earth nervously.

"There's food in the saddle bags," she said, before going to stand in front of the horse. "Max, take him to the tower, then come back, all right? And don't give him a hard time."

The horse shook his head.

Jack stared. Not because the horse actually appeared to be having a conversation with her, but because now there was sufficient light to see who she was.

Princess Rapunzel had just saved his life.

"Got on," she said.

Jack obeyed, too stunned to do otherwise.

"Max will take you into the forest," she said. "Don't try to take him anywhere else, or he'll bring you back here. When you get to the tower, there's a door on the back side, behind the vines. You can sleep in the bedroom upstairs. There are candles and matches in the cupboard to the right of the oven. Go."

"Wait," he said, and was glad the horse didn't start running yet. He tried to put his confusion into words... but all he could come up with was: "Why?"

She smiled at him sadly. "I'll tell you later."

"I'll see you again?" He was a little too happy about that prospect.

"In a few days," she nodded. "Now hold on. Max, go!"

The horse took off at a gallop.

#

Rapunzel arrived at the tower three days later – just as his food supply was running out.

Jack had been sitting on the stone floor, staring at one of the hundreds of paintings that covered the walls and ceiling. Just when he thought he had seen all of them, he looked up and found another one.

"Hi," she said, pushing off her dark purple cloak. She carried a large basket, which he hoped held food.

Sure enough, she opened it and pulled out a small glazed cake. "Here."

"Thanks," he said, accepting the cake. He was about to take a bite when he saw a small green creature perched on Rapunzel's shoulder, glaring at him.

The reptile made a motion to indicate to Jack that it was watching him closely.

It took another moment for Jack to recover enough to take a bite of the cake – and take a couple steps further away from the princess and her pet. He decided to sit on the stairs, where he could still see everything that happened.

In the silence, though, he couldn't resist asking the question that had tormented him for three days.

"Why did you save me?"

Rapunzel had taken a seat on the floor, and she finished chewing a bite from her own cake before she spoke.

"I'll tell me. But first, tell me why you needed saving," she said. "Why did you become a thief?"

Jack looked at the cake in his hands, his appetite suddenly deciding it had better places to be.

"I had a sister," he said, without really thinking. The story came to his lips unbidden "Emma. She was six years younger than me. She was my best friend. I would have done anything for her, and I almost never went anywhere without her."

He shook his head, fighting not to be overwhelmed by the emotions the memory brought back. Pain he had thought he had finally moved past.

"We went ice skating one day," he went on. "My mom said to be careful – and I laughed. I always thought she worried too much. But the ice cracked under Emma. I tried to save her, but I wasn't fast enough.

"I would have given anything – _anything_ – to take her place! I-" His voice broke, and he had to take a deep breath before he could go in. "I ran away from home because I couldn't handle my parents saying it wasn't my fault – because I knew it was. It was my idea to go skating that day, even though I knew the weather was getting warmer. I needed space to think, and to a seventeen year old kid, running away seemed like a good option. I thought maybe I could get away from the pain, and the guilt."

He shook his head at his own naiveté.

"I stole a loaf of bread," he said. "That was the first thing. I felt horrible, but I was starving. And I kept doing it." He snorted. "I got good enough. And the more I stole, the more I learned to shut my conscience up. Eventually I got used to it. I couldn't go home – I was too ashamed. And by the time I realized what I had done, I couldn't get work because the guards were looking for me."

He looked up to see Rapunzel was looking at the cake that was still in her hands.

"You don't know what it's like," he said, not sure if he defending himself to her – or to himself. Either way, his voice came out harsher than he'd intended. "You were locked up here for eighteen years – safe from the world! And when you get free, you were a princess! You never lacked anything – you've never lost anything. You don't know what it's like to have nothing."

He had stood up, his words growing louder.

And Rapunzel didn't look at him.

Jack looked down, ashamed of his own reaction. He tried to apologize, but all that came out was:

"You don't know what it's like to lose someone you love."

Rapunzel stood up.

Lifting his eyes, Jack thought for a moment that she was going to leave – and he wouldn't blame her.

But as he watched, she instead lifted up a corner of the carpet that covered part of the floor.

There, and the porous stone, Jack saw a dark stain he recognized as blood.

He stared at it for a moment, and then looked at Rapunzel, who met his eyes sadly.

"Yes I do, Jack."

To Be Continued


	7. Better To Have Loved

**Day 7! I can't believe the end it here... and this was the hardest one to write. But that doesn't surprise me. **

**Thank you so much to everyone who has made this week such a success for me! I truly appreciate all your reviews, and for the time you took to read my story. **

**When you're done, please read the author's note down at the bottom.**

**Since this is the continuation of yesterday's story, the same disclaimer applies.**

**Also, thank you to Xmenfan33, who was HUGE help with today's submission.**

Day 7: Better to Have Loved and Lost,

Then Never Too Have Loves At All

"His name was Eugene," she said, her eyes on the blood stain on the floor. "But he called himself Flynn – Flynn Rider. He found me by accident – after he stole my crown.

"I made him take me to see the lantern, and we fell in love." She smiled sadly. "I know it sounds stupid – I only knew his for fourty-eight hours. But he showed me a world beyond my tower.

"Gothel stabbed him in the back when he came to save me." She took a deep breath. "I promised, if she let me save him, would go with her. As long as he was alive, I could live in a cage. But before I could heal him, he cut my hair. I was willing to give my freedom for his life, but he gave his life for my freedom."

She looked up at Jack, who still sat on the stairs. "I may have my freedom, but it came with a price. And sometimes I wonder if it was worth it.

"I guess I saved you because I couldn't save him."

#

Winter blossomed into spring, which everyday warmed closer to summer.

It was the first truly hot day of the year, and her people all seemed as bright as the day. They smiled and waved as she rode out of the city on Maximus.

Her own smile was irrepressible.

A shadow loomed at the back of her mind, but she pushed it aside, too glad about the company she would spend the afternoon in.

As they crossed the bridge out of the city, their speed increased to a gallop. Maximus whinnied happily, and Rapunzel laughed at the thrill, the window blowing her hair.

The luxury of the palace was nice. But this, the simple joy of just riding hard and fast, was what Rapunzel loved most. Moments when she felt truly free.

They only slowed down out of necessity when they reached the hidden entrance to the cove.

As they neared the tower, she saw Jack come up out of the stream, shaking water from his wet hair.

Droplets of water rolled off his bare chest and arms. His muscles were lean and toned – he looked like some of the statues Rapunzel had seen in the museum, and her fingers itched to try and capture the sleek lines of his figure on paper.

It wasn't the first time she had observed he was handsome (far from it) but she didn't allow herself to dwell on it.

Jack wiped water from his face and opened his blue eyes, blinking as he looked at her.

"Aren't you early?" he asked.

Rapunzel dismounted easily, and began to untie the food filled saddlebags.

"I won't be able to come tomorrow," she said, glancing over at him with a smile. "I wanted to make sure you wouldn't starve."

"Not likely." Jack ran his hands over the surface of the water, causing it to dance around his fingers. "You keep me pretty well supplied."

She shrugged by way of a reply. With both saddlebags on the ground, she patted Maximus's shoulder, and he wondered off to graze on the grass near the water's edge.

"So what's the occasion?" Jack asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you've mentioned a couple balls and parties, but they've never stopped you from coming," he said. "So what's tomorrow."

Rapunzel pushed a lock of brown hair behind her ear, but it was pointless, since it fell right back to where it had been.

"It's my birthday," she said. "It would be kind of hard to disappear for a few hours."

She thought about the hundreds of lanterns that were being made. About the cook, who was making all her favorite foods. About the new dress she had been fitted for that morning. For a girl who had grown up alone in a tower, it sometimes overwhelmed her, when so much attention was directed at her.

She was startled out of her reverie by water splashing her face and arms.

Jack looked at her with the boyish grin she had become so fond of in the past six months. She wasn't sure what she would do if she didn't have that grin to look forward to every few days.

"You're thinking too much, Punz," he said. "Come on in."

Rapunzel waded in, quick to splash him back in retribution.

"Hey!" He laughed – and just splashed her again.

It had soon descended into an all-out water war, both screaming through their laughter each time the other managed to splash them.

Over the last six months, Rapunzel had watched Jack's personality change. His frigid air had melted away to a boy who just loved to laugh. It was why she loved to be around him. Because when she was with him, the world seemed a little brighter.

It was why she didn't want to do what she knew had to be done.

Finally, soaked and laughing, they dragged themselves to the boulders near the tower, where they could dry out in the warm sun.

Rapunzel lay back, her eyes closed, dangerously close to sleep, still smiling.

"Rapunzel?"

"Yeah, Jack?"

"I wanted to say thanks," he said.

When she glanced over, he was rubbing the back of his neck. "After Emma died, I forgot how to laugh – until I met you."

The thought that had been nagging at her for months now shouldered its way to the forefront of her mind.

"Jack..."

"What's wrong?"

She wondered how he was always so quick to pick up on her changes of mood.

"Jack, you can go, you know," she said. She couldn't look up to meet his eyes.

"What do you mean?"

She sighed. "I – the guards stopped looking for a couple months ago."

#

"Are you sure you're all right, Rapunzel?" her mother asked again, resting a hand on her shoulder.

Rapunzel tried to smile, but she knew it came out week. "Just over thinking, I guess. I'll be fine."

Her mother touched her cheek. She opened her mouth, probably to offer comfort Rapunzel so desperately needed at that moment.

But before she could say anything, there was a clamor, and the door was thrown open by the captain of the guard.

"Your Majesties?"

Her father immediately looked up from the conversation with one of his counselors and came closer to the door, gesturing for the man to came in.

Behind the captain came too more guards, between them they dragged-

"Jack!"

He looked up at her... with a smirk. "Not how I planned on seeing you again, Punz."

"What are you doing here?" she asked, forgetting that they were in the presence of most of the court – and she was on a nickname basis with a man she had freed from death row.

"I had to see you again," he said.

"But-"

"Rapunzel, I tried to leave," he said.

From the corner of her eye, she saw her father wave to the guards, and they let go of Jack's wrist.

"Thanks," he muttered, rubbing his wrists.

He turned back to her. "I was dead before I met you. And if I leave... I think I'll die again. Because any life without you isn't worth living. I came back to say I... well, I love you. I didn't think I would be able to care about anyone again, but you-"

He didn't get to stumble his way through the rest of his sentence, because Rapunzel ran to him, throwing her arms around his neck.

"I was so afraid I would lose you," she whispered, holding onto him with all her strength.

Jack returned her hug, his arms secure around her waist.

"You're the one who found me, Rapunzel."

The End

**WHAT A WEEK! It's been so great. A little tiring, but so awesome! **

**As requested, I will be posting a follow up (and possibly a precursor to) the story I wrote for Day 3, the sci-fi story. If I'm going to write the follow up, I want to show how Rapunzel ended up on the ship in the first place. XD**

**In the meantime, I would be really happy if you guys would check out my story **_**Dragon Guardian**_**, a ROTG and HTTYD crossover (eventual Hicstrid and RainbowSnowcone, no slash). I should be updating that really soon. I would love to know what you guys think.**

**My plan is to keep this story open so I can write for Jackunzel stories, so don't go too far. I'll be back!**


	8. Day 3 expansion

**Hey, guys!**

**I just wanted to let you know that I have started the promised expansion of my Day 3 submission (the sci-fi story). Because it's going to be about 4 chapters, I'm posting it as its own story. It's here in the Tagled/Rise of the Guardians section, under the title **_**Among The Stars**_**. I would really appreciate if you guys would check it out and let me know what you think!**

**~ . .Heart**


	9. Chapter 9: Oreos

**An anon request on tumblr. Short, and hopefully sweet. XD **

**This was written with my oneshot **_**There For You**_** in mind – but it could really be any high school AU. **

_Oreos_

"What exactly are we going to use algebra for in real life?" Jack asked, shaking his head as he glared at his homework. He was leaning back against Rapunzel's bed.

She lay on her stomach on the bed, doing her homework for the same class. "SATs."

"And after that?"

"College."

"And after that?"

"Um… dunno."

"Exactly," he said. "I can kind of picture using geometry. I admit, I've used it in snowboarding. Or rather, snowboarding is how I managed to pass that class."

"That's your excuse for hitting the slopes when you should have been studying?"

"That's the thing. I _was_ studying."

"Mmhmm." He could almost hear her eyes roll. Then he did hear the crinkling of a cellophane wrapped. "Oreo?"

"Thanks." He tilted his head back, opening his mouth.

Rapunzel giggled as she put the mint Oreo in his mouth and his teeth clamped around it, lips grazing her fingers just before she pulled her hand back.

"I should say no more cookies until you actually get some of your problems done."

He pulled the cookie from his mouth. "Returning to my point on the uselessness of algebra."

"I agree with you."

"The teachers' pet just turned to the dark side," he muttered, before biting the cookie in half. "I'm a bad influence on you, Punz."

"You are," she agreed.

Jack closed his eyes and finished his cookie, listening to her pink mechanical pencil scratch across the surface of her paper. Whenever she made a mistake she would let out a cute huff before he would hear her eraser.

Suddenly her pencil fell silent, and he didn't hear the shifting of her going for her text book. He could almost feel her thinking, so he waited for her to speak.

"You have cookie crumbs on your mouth," she said after a moment.

He didn't open his eyes while he reached up to brush the corner of his mouth. He felt some of the crumbs fall away under his fingers.

"Gone?"

"No," she giggled. "Here."

He braced himself to feel her fingers brush the crumbs away. Bracing was required. The smallest touch from her could drive him close to insanity if he wasn't prepared.

What touched his mouth was not her fingertips.

Her chin brushed against his nose, while hers touched his chin. And in between, her lips met his.

His heart hammered in his chest, too stunned that he was in the middle of their first kiss -his first kiss period - to even respond.

After a moment she pulled back. Their eyes met, and his stunned brain was struggling to compensate that her face was upside down. All knew knew was that he was looking into her eyes, and everything else was too strange for him to register what it was.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"For what?" He couldn't have spoken above a whisper if he wanted to.

"I didn't… I mean… we're dating, right?"

"I think so," he said. "We haven't really talked about it."

Their first attempt at a date had been a disaster. He hadn't been brave enough to try again. Unless study dates counted?

Her eyes shifted away from his nervously. She was worrying her lower lip between her teeth. Why was she so cute? No girl should be that cute. It shouldn't be allowed.

"Rapunzel."

He caught a stray lock of her hair, which had slipped out of her braid, and tugged gently to bring her back down. Their lips touched again - and this time he was ready.

Well, as ready as he could have been.


End file.
